Tunkwa Lake’s elevation is 3752 ft. and my favourite muley ridge is at 4550 ft. where I can see the lake from. The reason I mention this is I was there the first week of December and there was fresh sign all over the ridge and around my groundblind. So don’t discount the high country even if it is late season.
I can always tell when the whitetail rut is over because the huge buck I call “The Ghost” is leaving his tracks on the resort property again as he has for the last three winters. I call him that because I have personally not seen him, lots of locals have, but I haven’t. Buck, our black lab, found one of his shed antlers last April while hiking in the timber just outside the gate. He is a smart old guy except during the rut. A local couple were driving one of the sideroads midday during the rut and there he was in the middle of the road. Being first year hunters they were extremely nervous as the wife slowly slipped out the passenger door and fired off a shot at him. He bolted and she gave chase leaving the husband in the truck impatient and anxious. Can you guess what happened next? That’s right, the husband waited five minutes that probably felt more like half an hour and started off after his wife. He got about 20 yds. from the truck when that big old buck circled around and came back out on the road 100 yds. from the truck. The husband (who shall remain nameless) by his own account, “was shaking so bad he couldn’t have hit the broad side of a barn”.
Well, all in all it was a decent hunting season. the conditions were tough at time. The first month was windy almost every day and there was a serious lack of snow in November. I saw more bucks this year than ever before and I actually passed on quite a few, one or two were by choice. I’m kind of regretting not taking that 3×4 muley on September 13th standing in a very co-operating stance thirty yards in front of the truck but you know what they say about spilled milk!
Thanks for checking in with us this fall as it was our first attempt at a hunting report and we didn’t really know what the reaction would be but on all accounts it has been quite favourable. Happy Holidays and good health. John
So until next week, get out there and enjoy the best season Mother Nature has to offer and good hunting!
John
I missed last week’s report as I was busy hunting during our week off. On Oct. 31 I took my wife hunting in a last ditch attempt at a spike fork bull moose. There was quite a bit of fresh sign in a nice piece of timber where we’ve had a groundblind for a couple of years but no moose so we headed back to the truck just before dark. As we neared the road we heard a grunting buck. We stopped at the edge of the timber just as a 26″ 4 pt. buck came off the ridge heading right at us. He spotted my movement as I ducked behind a willow and as I clicked the safety off he spun on his heels and three bounds later he was a memory. Lucky enough there were no children present as I cursed myself up and down. On November 1 we had clients check in for their cow draw and the conditions were less than ideal. The first two days brought no results so I gave them a couple of suggestions on areas with good moose populations. Outside of two moose crossing on top of their own tracks they had no sightings. So for their last day I suggested some areas at higher elevation further from the resort and at 2 PM they managed to harvest a beauty cow moose. Five hours later we had it back hanging in our “meatshed” skinned out and cleaned. Congratulations to “The Two Stu’s”. Out hunting yesterday with a couple friends who had a bull draw I came across a dwarf willow that had been thrashed, stomped and scraped by a good sized buck judging by the size of the tracks around the willow. Based on this and the Oct.31 incident I would say the rut is ready to commence any day and with the new moon coming on the 8th it could be this weekend. So get out there and push the bush and, unlike me, be prepared for that buck around the next corner.
Until next week, good hunting. John.
John.
Not a lot to report this week. I heard about a LEH bull taken in 3-18. Apparently this bull was 530 lbs. at the butcher which is a good class bull for this area. Another client looking for a spike fork moose had a chance at a 5 x 5 Muley mid afternoon two days ago but passed on the long shot which reminds me of a good piece of hunting advise – “it is better not to shoot later wishing you had than shooting and later wishing that you hadn’t!”.
This is an exciting time of the season. The bucks are entering pre-rut patrolling rublines, playfully sparring with other bucks and just getting jazzed for the oncoming rut and add to that the fact that it has been snowing since 10:00 AM and it is now 5:00 PM. Tomorrow morning will be awesome! So until next week, happy hunting and straight eyes.
John
Well, last week I thought the weather would become more conducive to good hunting conditions. It was not to be. Thanksgiving Weekend was very windy with everything intensifying to Sunday when we had winds gusting to 80kph keeping all the game in the safety of the deep timber. One of our annuals managed a 2 pt. buck on Saturday. We received reports of a LEH bull taken on Saturday evening as well as a spike fork bull. Finally Monday morning the wind subsided and we woke to temperatures of -5 and one of our clients came in with a 3×4 muley buck that we helped skin and quarter before their trip back to Vancouver. Tuesday evening while scouting a new area I came upon two bucks sparring right at dark so they are getting in the rutting mood but not for a couple of weeks yet. Wednesday morning we awoke to temperatures of +8 and this morning -4 and this is what we have endured all season. Be ready, when this crazy weather stabilizes there will be so many bucks and bulls moving that your only problem will be which one to take!
Until next week keep your chins high and your scopes higher.
Good luck. John
See you next week and best of luck – John.
The full moon is upon us tonight so this weekend hunting late morning into early afternoon can be very productive. If the nights are overcast best success could be found at first light. Get out there and enjoy the
wilderness.
Best of luck and straight eyes. John.
Thank god the heat finally broke on Sunday. The rain and cooler weather took over Monday. High temperatures around 15C and on and off rain all day Monday. The rain stopped around 5:30 Monday evening and with great relief I grabbed my hunting gear and was out the door. Apparently the deer had the same idea. In two hours I counted 19 mulies. Most of these were does and small bucks. Overnight Monday we had torrential rains until around 3AM.Tuesday we awoke and looked across the lake to discover SNOW above 4500′. Headed out before dawn and the exact opposite of the night before was experienced. I didn’t see one deer or moose. Wednesday morning I went out for a quick hunt before work. Saw a beauty of a 3 pt. buck and several does. A friend of mine was hunting a km further down the road and saw a huge 4 pt. that had him pegged from 500 yds. He silently slipped back into the timber without a second thought.
Spike fork bull moose opens tomorrow(Sept.20) and I’ll manage to get out for a quick hunt again before work. With the cooler and more stable weather the moose should be out and moving in the mornings and evenings with the rut being just 7-14 days off as long as we don’t get another heat wave. Once the hunting heats up we’ll try to post reports twice a week but until then it will be every Wednesday.
Happy hunting and straight eyes…….John
Deer hunting for Bow Only and Juniors opened Sept.1 with very mild pressure in this area. I directed a bowhunter staying here Labour Day Weekend to a cutblock that has a good population of mule deer and upon arrival he stepped onto the slash and crept up to the draw that attracts the deer there and spotted six bucks feeding all at about 70 yds.(too far for the bow). There was also a medium sized bull moose hightailing it for the timber.
Sept.10 marked the opening of rifle season for 4 pt. muleys and any whitetail buck. The weather was not cooperating as it was quite hot but I managed to get out there the first two mornings and if you’re at your spot by dawn you can see the deer moving for the first hour of daylight. I did spot a small buck heading to the timber around 8:00 but did not pursue him. Went back in the evening and saw only a couple of feeding does in the last half hour of light. The next evening went to check out some new country in 3-19B and saw four moose one of which was a 3 year old bull. Also saw a 4pt muley buck who stopped long enough
on the road to show us what we would not be shooting.
It appears this will be an average year for grouse. I have seen lots on my scouting trips but not an overabundance.
Don’t know why but they always seem to do the heart attack flush when you’re stalking a nice buck!
All in all it looks to be another good season for deer and moose numbers. With a combination of mild winters and favourable summer conditions the bucks are potbellied and highhorned just awaiting…..
Thanks and good luck out there.
John
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